Resources enable servers to expose structured data for LLM context enrichment. They act as standardized data containers that users can selectively add as context into Copilot interactions.

URI Identification

• Unique identifiers using custom URI schemes
  • Format: [protocol]://[host]/[path]
  • Examples: file:///logs/app.log, postgres://db/customers

Data Types

• Text Resources: UTF-8 content (code, logs, configs)
• Binary Resources: Base64-encoded data (images, PDFs)

Discovery Methods

1. Direct listing via resources/list endpoint
2. URI templates for dynamic resources

Access Patterns

• Clients request specific resources via resources/read
• Batch retrieval supported (multiple resources per request)

Update System

• Real-time notifications for:
  • List changes (list_changed)
  • Content updates (resources/updated)
• Subscription model for monitoring changes

Use Cases

• Embedding API responses in prompts
• Providing live system metrics
• Including document snippets
• Sharing screenshots/images